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Great Queen Avemiri Simakha
Great Queen Avemiri Simakha Great Queen (or Kugemukh) Avemiri Simakha was an Estemorian ruler and commander who is considered a national hero of Estemoria, and was also the only non-Nesarian member of the royal/imperial dynasty. Although Avemiri came to be Empress of Nesaria, she continued to style herself as Great Queen of Estemoria, or Kugemukh Estemokhareg. Avemiri was Queen of Rekyena (Gemukh Rekhyeneg) before being chosen as Queen of Baeruthia (Gemukh Beyrukheg) at the start of the Nesarian invasion. She initially had trouble gaining support from the Estemorian clans due to her significant Frifolkian ancestry, although she eventually won over all the Kings and formed an Estemorian coalition, being hailed as Great Queen (or Kugemukh) and named the successor of the Kumukh Handughy - the first ruler of all the Estemorians since the legendary Great Kings of old that lived during the Age of Titans. Avemiri proved herself as a skilled tactician, although her real talent was her ability to inspire and persuade, shown by her unification of the clans, many of which were actually at war with each other when called to unite. Avemiri effectively co-ordinated the defence of Estemoria until her decisive defeat at the Battle of Khagon. Emperor Athdus III managed to capture her, but he was impressed by her beauty, intelligence and bravery, and ultimately let her go free, earning respect from amongst the other Estemorian rulers. There are two conflicting accounts of what then followed. One account states that Athdus needed an effective and loyal local ruler for Estemoria, as he was a great believer in self-rule being the best way to ensure long-term stability. Avemiri offered herself as a candidate and was almost immediately picked, as she was not only a competent ruler, but accepted amongst the clans. Avemiri planned to use her position to revolt, exploiting the attraction that Athdus clearly felt for her, but after spending time with Athdus she eventually fell in love with him and they got married. Some claim that the marriage was a continuation of her plot, and the love was not genuine until after the marriage. The other account, and the one that Athdus himself claimed to be true in his diaries (not that he wrote much about it), is that the two found themselves drawn to each other after Avemiri was freed from captivity, and Avemiri agreed to show Athdus around Estemoria over the following winter and spring so that he actually knew the country he now ruled. On this trip the two fell in love, and this combined with Avemiri's clear aptitude for leadership is what made Athdus appoint her as the governor of Estemoria. Although they did love each other, they decided to delay the marriage, as such a quick marriage - with a foreigner that was just recently an enemy, no less - would have been looked down upon by both their nations. Whatever story is true, all sources agree that the love between Athdus and Avemiri was real, and the marriage was wholly consensual. Athdus and Avemiri both helped each other rule their domains. Avemiri played a significant role in securing autonomy not only for Estemoria but for all the countries that Athdus would come to rule, laying the foundations for the federal model that the Empire would adopt in 1534. Avemiri also played a role in securing more rights for women, encouraging Athdus to do away with the restriction on not having women as employees or agents of the state and personally signing the bills to criminalise domestic abuse and to allow single mothers to gain Nesarian citizenship. Appearance and Genetics Only some elements of Avemiri's physical appearance are mentioned by the historical sources, and none provide any real degree of detail. Every source mentions her being about as tall as Athdus, and having red hair and paler skin than her Estemorian contemporaries. This is evidence of Frifolkian ancestry, although the theories on where she got this ancestry from are conflicting and impossible to prove. Only two sources mention her eye colour, one saying green and one saying amber, and one image of her later discredited as a fake showed blue eyes, but either of these would strengthen the case for her Frifolkian ancestry, as other Estemorians natively only have brown eyes. It can therefore be stated that Avemiri was somewhere in-between the North Estemorid and South Estemorid phenotypes, but strongly leaning more towards North Estemorid. Avemiri's genetic impact on the Imperial dynasty fizzled out within a few generations, as she was the only non-Nesarian to enter the family. Modern members of the Capilus dynasty who volunteered for genetic testing showed negligible or no Estemorian DNA. The other element of her appearance mentioned by the historical sources is a scar on the face underneath the eye, although the sources disagree as to how large this was and whether it was under the left or right eye. All of them that mention the scar do, however, agree that it was inflicted in a fight against her future husband Athdus, where she also gave Athdus a large scar on his thigh (again, there is argument as to which thigh).